17 year olds are not children. They may act like children because that's all that's been expected of them. They act impulsively without regard for consequences because in most cases, there are no consequences. Tomorrow, I have to go to court with my 16 year old son for two traffic infractions he received when he rummaged through my bedroom and found my hidden spare set of keys, drove my 4wd pickup truck with a manual transmission into another truck in an intersection. He did not have permission to drive my truck, in fact, he has never taken drivers education nor does he have a drivers license. In short, he stole my truck and totaled it and found out the hard way that driving is a little more complicated than it looks. Besides the obvious liability nightmare I had to go through, he was cited for failure to avoid a collision and driving without a license. Regardless of what the court says, he has blown his opportunity to drive, at least until he is 18 and can get a license on his own. He is also going to reimburse me for all costs incurred by his disregard for safety. This includes my insurance deductable, time spent on dozens of phone calls, trips to the courthouse, impound yard and insurance company. Even the full tank of gas that was in the truck when he wrecked it. I am going to see to it that he suffers personally, socially, and financially from the decision that he made to drive with no training or permission. Am I being too harsh on him? I don't think so. He is going to learn that actions have consequences, good and bad. I lost my truck, he lost his opportunity to obtain a driver's license on my dime. This is my point - I am going to hold his feet to the fire on this, he is not going to get a break from me.
I am an experienced IT professional with nearly 17 years in the industry. I have managed Novell networks, phone switches, voicemail, mail servers, cabling, terminal servers, helpdesk, PC's (beginning with 8088 cpus), and for the past several years have "specialized" in *NIX system administration. I have built hundreds of AIX and linux servers. What do I run on my home PC and laptop? Windows XP. Why? Because it works well enough. It is compatible with the verious apps I use in my job. Sure, I've built "hobby" systems using linux for home, but have neither the time, the patience, or the desire to try to build/run/maintain linux systems for my personal use. I have the know-how to do it, I just choose not to. After dealing with computers and computer-related issues day in and day out for all these years, the last thing I want is to introduce an unnecessary (and unwanted) level of complication into my daily life.
I agree. As a system admin, it is often my job to tell people no. I have to tell them why their plan won't work. I tell them tactfully and sympathetically, but someone has to tell them no. It's either due to company policy/system limitations/Sarbanes-Oxley compliance/network constraints/security policy, etc., or any combination thereof. Like the DBA who got pissed because we were told to enforce password expiration to be SOX compliant. He said to me "do you have any idea how many passwords I'd have to remember?" Those who ask nicely get preferred treatment, those who make every request an emergency or priority, soon run out of admin karma and get put at the bottom of the pile. Treat people the way you'd like to be treated is the big moral of the story here.
A lot of issues plaguing systems admins can be boiled down to respect. I've got 17 years experience as a professional system admin, which is way more practical experience than some business graduate or an MBA fresh out of school. I don't expect them to bow before me, but don't tell me how to do my job. Tell me what outcome you want, but leave the execution up to me. When I became a system admin, I knew I was signing up for long hours, and what is basically a 24/7 job. I am always on call. That being said, remember that I have a wife and kids and a life of my own. I don't mind working during the weekend when necessary, but don't take my personal time for granted. Make it important. Don't call me in the middle of the night because someone is having problems with a dev system. Save those calls for production problems. Remember the quote from the movie "Road House"? "...just be nice." That's all. All I am asking for is a little professional respect.
This reminds me of when I first bought DirecTV about 10 years ago. Back then, you could receive (for an additional fee) the East/West network feeds. I loved it, I had 3 chances to see my favorite network shows, if you take into account the local affiliates also. Then one day, I received a letter from DirecTV informing me that unless I could prove that I could not receive a "satisfactory" analog signal from my local affiliate, the East/West feeds would be shut off. I found out the reason why was all because of advertising revenue for the local affiliates. I guess they only want me watching their commercials. Like if I live in the Rocky Mountains, I'm going to buy a Ford from a dealer in Buffalo, NY? Forcing people to watch your advertising will not induce them to buy the products advertised. Disney can go pound sand.
I bought a lot of singles in the 60's. They were cheap ( $1) and if you just liked one or two songs from an album, they were the way to go, as long as the one or two songs you liked were released on a 45. We had automatic turntables back then that you could place a stack of LPs on, or using an adapter, 45's. I had a couple hundred 45's by the time I graduated high school. Any record store had entire 45 sections, with at least the top 50 or 100 best-selling singles, plus lots of older titles as well. I think a large part of the popularity of the 45 rpm record was due to the fact that's what were used in juke boxes. Then came the 8 track tape, and you could actually listen to the same music at home or in a car. What a concept!...and yes, we walked to school in the snow, uphill both ways.
My main beef with the recording industry is the constant changing of formats. I started out buying LP's and 45's in the late 60's. As I got older, I bought many of the same albums on 8-track tape (yes, I'm THAT OLD), some of them 2 or 3 times over, due to the inherent faults in the media and because I had 8-tracks stolen. After 8-tracks went obsolete, I re-bought much of the same music on cassette, then CD's were introduced, and the cycle repeats. In actuality, I have bought many of my albums 4 or 5 times over over the last 30-35 years. That's 4 or 5 copies of Aqualung, Fandango, Made In Japan, Machine Head - you get the idea. They have made a ton of money over the years, due to nothing other than technological advances in recording media. I'm sure I'm not the only one with this experience.
Today, I use P2P to get usually old individual songs that are out of print, and even if available, I probably wouldn't buy anyway. And these companies that have re-sold me the same music over and over again want to sue me for it? There's a special place in h3ll for these folks. They need to re-invent themselves and develop a decent marketing/business model based on modern technology. And they also need to find some decent artists. Not everyone likes hip-hop, country, or overhyped, over-engineered crap like Britney Spears.
Marilyn Manson is very intelligent. This should not be a surprise to anyone. He's made a fortune by finding a niche in the music industry and exploiting it to his advantage. Frank Zappa was also extremely bright and very, very articulate, anyone remember the senate hearings regarding record warning labels? Bruce Dickinson of Iron Maiden was being interviewed many years ago and he responded to the question "Is Iron Maiden satanic?" His answer: "no, but it helps sell records". My point is that it takes a certain amount of intelligence to achieve a great deal of success in any industry, except maybe for sports, in which case it's athletic ability that is needed. Just because musicians look and act differently than what is considered "normal" doesn't mean they are not bright people. They are probably all of above-average intelligence.
Thanks for your recommendations. Last night, I replaced one of the 100W incandescent flood bulbs with a 100-watt equivalent CFL I already had on hand. I actually prefer the light it emits more than the original. I am going to go at lunch today and buy more. My recessed cans already have a white interior finish, so except for maybe reducing the height of the can, I'm good to go. One thing I neglected to mention in my original post was that I have not had any of these CFLs fail in over 2 years of use.
I even plan to use them in the light fixtures i my ceiling fans.
I use a number of CFL bulbs in my home, they work especially well for the sconce-type fixtures on either side of my garage door which I leave on all night for security purposes. I have over a dozen recessed can fixtures throughout my home, and I am considering replacing the 100W flood bulbs that are probably costing me a fortune in electricity (~$400 electric bill last month - I live in AZ with a pool and 2 HVAC units), so I am trying to cut utility costs wherever possible. These are a great way to go! I'd recommend anyone give 'em a try!
SLH "There are none so blind as those who will not see."
I regularly use self-checkout lanes at both the grocery store and Home Depot. I think the technology doesn't lend itself very well in the Home Depot model. There are too many items that need cashier intervention. One Saturday evening, I went to my local Home Depot and the only registers open were the self checkout. If I recall, one of the four stations was out of order (typical), and the other three were busy with several people in the queue for the next available station. Just about everyone had lumber, pipe, or something else that required a cashier to input or confirm. I thought I'd never get out of there alive, it took so long. Standing there observing other people, it makes you wonder how they deal with ATM machines, microwave ovens, VCR/DVD players, etc., on a daily basis. It's not a complicated process, yet they make it so difficult. This is not a new concept anymore, I recall seeing the first of these self-checkout stations 7 or 8 years ago in my area. How long does it take to get over the learning curve?
I worked as a field service engineer for may years, specializing in the maintenance and repair of copy machines. Most of our customers had service contracts, but those who didn't were charged for time and materials. There were many occasions when I had their problems fixed in less than 10 minutes. I would usually clean the machine or something to try and give them an hour's worth of time (approx), since we had a 1-hour minimum, plus a travel charge. Some customers would say, "wow, you charge $120/hr. I'm in the wrong line of work." As if I got to pocket the amount I was billing them. Or they'd say "You charge $120 just to reseat my developer assembly?" I would reply, "$20 is for the time it takes me to drive here. $100 is for knowing what to do once I get here"
In the most recent legislative session, a bill was introduced to ban all ads for gambling in Utah. Utah is one of 2 states with no form of legalized gambling (Hawaii is the other) and Utahns who gamble help keep Nevada border towns alive and the Idaho lottery flush with money. The politician who introduced the bill also tacked on a provision to make it illegal to advertise prostitution in Utah. Not that it's a problem, but "just in case it ever becomes a problem in the future." I'm glad I left Utah and would never live there again. It's a nice place to visit, but....
This is my main problem with this concept, that the state feels they are entitled to more of your hard-earned money. The state of California has some of the strictest emissions and fuel economy laws in the country, and they have for years. Reduced gasoline tax revenue is the natural progression of these laws. Now the state wakes up and realizes that they're missing their piece of the pie, and they want to charge a use tax based on miles driven. This also, in a state that defines urban sprawl and is already a commuters nightmare. I hope this starts driving people out of California so they really start to see diminishing gasoline tax and/or mileage tax revenue and the whole stinking place collapses. It would serve them right! I live in a state that shares a border with California and I don't want this mentality to ooze across the state line.
1. Give your people the tools they need to do their jobs and then stand out of the way and let them work!
2. Don't sweat the small stuff. A guy who just spent his entire weekend (uncompensated) nursing a project "go-live" doesn't deserve to be called on the carpet for taking an extra 15 minutes on his lunch break.
3. And above all else, never *ever* hang your people out to dry. You take the heat for them and then deal with them appropriately later, but never make them feel like you are not backing them up 100%.
Treat people as outlined above and they'll be willing to walk through fire for you when the time comes. It's a karma thing.
Let's say you buy a widget that comes with a 1 yr warranty from the manufacturer. The sales rep at BB talks you into a 3 year service plan. BB's service plan doesn't cover the widget while the manufacturer's warranty is in effect. However, the extended plan you bought from BB begins at the date of purchase. This effectively makes your 3 year service plan a 2 year service plan. BB sells these plans knowing that it will cost them ZERO dollars for the first year, and chances are, the product will not fail during the subsequent 2 years. I'd like to see how many sp's they sell compared to how many they actually pay out on. In addition, no service plan covers customer abuse, but I've had salespeople try to sell them that way. I won't buy one. Never have, never will.
My son, a diesel mechanic, recently went to work at a union shop. His first few weeks there, he was trying to bust his a$$ to make a good impression with his new employer. One day, the union shop steward took him aside and told him to 'slow down' because he was making the other, more experienced UNION workers look bad. He was turning out over 50% more work than the UNION guys. A few months after he started, the contract between his employer and the customer whose equipment they maintain was up for bid. There was talk of pay cuts to slash the contract amount to ensure its' renewal. (note: the contract was renewed without the pay cuts)
I guess the customer didn't feel they were getting what they paid for. No wonder, given the attitude of the UNION workers. He's a member of the union now, but doesn't yet (and hopefully never will) buy into to the "entitlement" attitude that seems to infest that shop.
Making people financially responsible for their own rescue costs is just ridiculous. Or are you seriously suggesting that only the people who can or are willing to risk that kind of liability should have access to our Public Parks?
No, what I am saying is that if you are willingly participating in an activity that puts you at risk for getting lost/injured, ie: rock climbing, hiking, backcountry skiing, etc.. You should bear the cost for your rescue, not the taxpayers. I used to live in Utah and there is an abundance of outdoor recreational opportunities within literally minutes of a major metro area. Practically every weekend there would be helicopter rescues of inexperienced, ill-equipped rock climbers, snowmobilers, hunters, and hikers who found themselves in peril due to their own stupidity/lack of preparation. Why should the general public have to foot the bill to pluck some meathead off the top of a mountain peak because he/she didn't foresee cold night temperatures at 10-11,000 feet?
Re:I worked for a company that made these
on
Privacy in the Woods?
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· Score: 2, Interesting
Once word gets out that the trails are "bugged", people will no longer stay on established trails and will try to circumvent the system by creating their own. This will lead to environmental damage, including soil erosion, mudslides, etc.
One way to induce people to use the system would be to hold them financially responsible for the expense of their own rescue.
I could handle all RUSH all the time, but who else is there? Neil Young, Gordon Lightfoot, Anne Murray, Celine Dion? That's probably why most of the Canadian population lives close to the US border - to pick up US radio!
I subscribe to DirecTV, receive over 200 channels, and am sick and tired of nothing (practically) but infomercials from 11:00 or so at night until 5:00-6:00 in the morning. It used to be that infomercials were restricted to the extreme wee hours of the morning, now you can see them any time of day or night. I'm sure these are very profitable for the networks that air them, since it's pure advertising revenue, but enough is enough! Put them on the free airwaves, but if you're paying for television content, cable or dish, you shouldn't have to be subjected to this midless crap. I have never bought anything from an infomercial or shopping network, for that matter. Nor will I ever!
I bought a 2003 Pontiac Grand Am recently, in looking through the owner's manual at the specifications for replacement lamps, I find that the headlamp and driving light replacement bulbs are not listed. Below the little table in the book, it reads "for any bulbs not listed, contact your dealer."
So now, instead of going to Auto Zone to pick up a replacement lamp, I have to go to the dealer and pay probably what will be an inflated price. This is basic maintenance, not some complex procedure. I don't like the idea that if I'm driving across the country and one of my headlamps burns out, I can't go to the local parts shop and get a replacement, so I risk getting a ticket until I can get to a town with 1) a GM dealership and 2) a GM dealership during business hours.
The car manaufacturers should be forced to standardize on a common interface so any PC can connect to the on board computer using a USB or serial connection to read basic system information. Maybe not change critical settings, but a car owner should have reasonable access to information relating to the vehicle. Sort of like printing out a test page on a laser printer, which lists various settings and other useful information.
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17 year olds are not children. They may act like children because that's all that's been expected of them. They act impulsively without regard for consequences because in most cases, there are no consequences. Tomorrow, I have to go to court with my 16 year old son for two traffic infractions he received when he rummaged through my bedroom and found my hidden spare set of keys, drove my 4wd pickup truck with a manual transmission into another truck in an intersection. He did not have permission to drive my truck, in fact, he has never taken drivers education nor does he have a drivers license. In short, he stole my truck and totaled it and found out the hard way that driving is a little more complicated than it looks. Besides the obvious liability nightmare I had to go through, he was cited for failure to avoid a collision and driving without a license. Regardless of what the court says, he has blown his opportunity to drive, at least until he is 18 and can get a license on his own. He is also going to reimburse me for all costs incurred by his disregard for safety. This includes my insurance deductable, time spent on dozens of phone calls, trips to the courthouse, impound yard and insurance company. Even the full tank of gas that was in the truck when he wrecked it. I am going to see to it that he suffers personally, socially, and financially from the decision that he made to drive with no training or permission. Am I being too harsh on him? I don't think so. He is going to learn that actions have consequences, good and bad. I lost my truck, he lost his opportunity to obtain a driver's license on my dime. This is my point - I am going to hold his feet to the fire on this, he is not going to get a break from me.
I am an experienced IT professional with nearly 17 years in the industry. I have managed Novell networks, phone switches, voicemail, mail servers, cabling, terminal servers, helpdesk, PC's (beginning with 8088 cpus), and for the past several years have "specialized" in *NIX system administration. I have built hundreds of AIX and linux servers. What do I run on my home PC and laptop? Windows XP. Why? Because it works well enough. It is compatible with the verious apps I use in my job. Sure, I've built "hobby" systems using linux for home, but have neither the time, the patience, or the desire to try to build/run/maintain linux systems for my personal use. I have the know-how to do it, I just choose not to. After dealing with computers and computer-related issues day in and day out for all these years, the last thing I want is to introduce an unnecessary (and unwanted) level of complication into my daily life.
I agree. As a system admin, it is often my job to tell people no. I have to tell them why their plan won't work. I tell them tactfully and sympathetically, but someone has to tell them no. It's either due to company policy/system limitations/Sarbanes-Oxley compliance/network constraints/security policy, etc., or any combination thereof. Like the DBA who got pissed because we were told to enforce password expiration to be SOX compliant. He said to me "do you have any idea how many passwords I'd have to remember?" Those who ask nicely get preferred treatment, those who make every request an emergency or priority, soon run out of admin karma and get put at the bottom of the pile. Treat people the way you'd like to be treated is the big moral of the story here.
A lot of issues plaguing systems admins can be boiled down to respect. I've got 17 years experience as a professional system admin, which is way more practical experience than some business graduate or an MBA fresh out of school. I don't expect them to bow before me, but don't tell me how to do my job. Tell me what outcome you want, but leave the execution up to me. When I became a system admin, I knew I was signing up for long hours, and what is basically a 24/7 job. I am always on call. That being said, remember that I have a wife and kids and a life of my own. I don't mind working during the weekend when necessary, but don't take my personal time for granted. Make it important. Don't call me in the middle of the night because someone is having problems with a dev system. Save those calls for production problems. Remember the quote from the movie "Road House"? "...just be nice." That's all. All I am asking for is a little professional respect.
This reminds me of when I first bought DirecTV about 10 years ago. Back then, you could receive (for an additional fee) the East/West network feeds. I loved it, I had 3 chances to see my favorite network shows, if you take into account the local affiliates also. Then one day, I received a letter from DirecTV informing me that unless I could prove that I could not receive a "satisfactory" analog signal from my local affiliate, the East/West feeds would be shut off. I found out the reason why was all because of advertising revenue for the local affiliates. I guess they only want me watching their commercials. Like if I live in the Rocky Mountains, I'm going to buy a Ford from a dealer in Buffalo, NY? Forcing people to watch your advertising will not induce them to buy the products advertised. Disney can go pound sand.
I bought a lot of singles in the 60's. They were cheap ( $1) and if you just liked one or two songs from an album, they were the way to go, as long as the one or two songs you liked were released on a 45. We had automatic turntables back then that you could place a stack of LPs on, or using an adapter, 45's. I had a couple hundred 45's by the time I graduated high school. Any record store had entire 45 sections, with at least the top 50 or 100 best-selling singles, plus lots of older titles as well. I think a large part of the popularity of the 45 rpm record was due to the fact that's what were used in juke boxes. Then came the 8 track tape, and you could actually listen to the same music at home or in a car. What a concept! ...and yes, we walked to school in the snow, uphill both ways.
My main beef with the recording industry is the constant changing of formats. I started out buying LP's and 45's in the late 60's. As I got older, I bought many of the same albums on 8-track tape (yes, I'm THAT OLD), some of them 2 or 3 times over, due to the inherent faults in the media and because I had 8-tracks stolen. After 8-tracks went obsolete, I re-bought much of the same music on cassette, then CD's were introduced, and the cycle repeats. In actuality, I have bought many of my albums 4 or 5 times over over the last 30-35 years. That's 4 or 5 copies of Aqualung, Fandango, Made In Japan, Machine Head - you get the idea. They have made a ton of money over the years, due to nothing other than technological advances in recording media. I'm sure I'm not the only one with this experience.
Today, I use P2P to get usually old individual songs that are out of print, and even if available, I probably wouldn't buy anyway. And these companies that have re-sold me the same music over and over again want to sue me for it? There's a special place in h3ll for these folks. They need to re-invent themselves and develop a decent marketing/business model based on modern technology. And they also need to find some decent artists. Not everyone likes hip-hop, country, or overhyped, over-engineered crap like Britney Spears.
Marilyn Manson is very intelligent. This should not be a surprise to anyone. He's made a fortune by finding a niche in the music industry and exploiting it to his advantage. Frank Zappa was also extremely bright and very, very articulate, anyone remember the senate hearings regarding record warning labels? Bruce Dickinson of Iron Maiden was being interviewed many years ago and he responded to the question "Is Iron Maiden satanic?" His answer: "no, but it helps sell records". My point is that it takes a certain amount of intelligence to achieve a great deal of success in any industry, except maybe for sports, in which case it's athletic ability that is needed. Just because musicians look and act differently than what is considered "normal" doesn't mean they are not bright people. They are probably all of above-average intelligence.
Thanks for your recommendations. Last night, I replaced one of the 100W incandescent flood bulbs with a 100-watt equivalent CFL I already had on hand. I actually prefer the light it emits more than the original. I am going to go at lunch today and buy more. My recessed cans already have a white interior finish, so except for maybe reducing the height of the can, I'm good to go. One thing I neglected to mention in my original post was that I have not had any of these CFLs fail in over 2 years of use.
I even plan to use them in the light fixtures i my ceiling fans.
I use a number of CFL bulbs in my home, they work especially well for the sconce-type fixtures on either side of my garage door which I leave on all night for security purposes. I have over a dozen recessed can fixtures throughout my home, and I am considering replacing the 100W flood bulbs that are probably costing me a fortune in electricity (~$400 electric bill last month - I live in AZ with a pool and 2 HVAC units), so I am trying to cut utility costs wherever possible. These are a great way to go! I'd recommend anyone give 'em a try!
SLH
"There are none so blind as those who will not see."
I regularly use self-checkout lanes at both the grocery store and Home Depot. I think the technology doesn't lend itself very well in the Home Depot model. There are too many items that need cashier intervention. One Saturday evening, I went to my local Home Depot and the only registers open were the self checkout. If I recall, one of the four stations was out of order (typical), and the other three were busy with several people in the queue for the next available station. Just about everyone had lumber, pipe, or something else that required a cashier to input or confirm. I thought I'd never get out of there alive, it took so long. Standing there observing other people, it makes you wonder how they deal with ATM machines, microwave ovens, VCR/DVD players, etc., on a daily basis. It's not a complicated process, yet they make it so difficult. This is not a new concept anymore, I recall seeing the first of these self-checkout stations 7 or 8 years ago in my area. How long does it take to get over the learning curve?
I worked as a field service engineer for may years, specializing in the maintenance and repair of copy machines. Most of our customers had service contracts, but those who didn't were charged for time and materials. There were many occasions when I had their problems fixed in less than 10 minutes. I would usually clean the machine or something to try and give them an hour's worth of time (approx), since we had a 1-hour minimum, plus a travel charge. Some customers would say, "wow, you charge $120/hr. I'm in the wrong line of work." As if I got to pocket the amount I was billing them. Or they'd say "You charge $120 just to reseat my developer assembly?" I would reply, "$20 is for the time it takes me to drive here. $100 is for knowing what to do once I get here"
Do not taunt Happy Fun Ball!
In the most recent legislative session, a bill was introduced to ban all ads for gambling in Utah. Utah is one of 2 states with no form of legalized gambling (Hawaii is the other) and Utahns who gamble help keep Nevada border towns alive and the Idaho lottery flush with money. The politician who introduced the bill also tacked on a provision to make it illegal to advertise prostitution in Utah. Not that it's a problem, but "just in case it ever becomes a problem in the future." I'm glad I left Utah and would never live there again. It's a nice place to visit, but....
I used to live in Utah and I'm glad I left! Just another attempt of the state to micro-legislate its people.
This is my main problem with this concept, that the state feels they are entitled to more of your hard-earned money. The state of California has some of the strictest emissions and fuel economy laws in the country, and they have for years. Reduced gasoline tax revenue is the natural progression of these laws. Now the state wakes up and realizes that they're missing their piece of the pie, and they want to charge a use tax based on miles driven. This also, in a state that defines urban sprawl and is already a commuters nightmare. I hope this starts driving people out of California so they really start to see diminishing gasoline tax and/or mileage tax revenue and the whole stinking place collapses. It would serve them right! I live in a state that shares a border with California and I don't want this mentality to ooze across the state line.
1. Give your people the tools they need to do their jobs and then stand out of the way and let them work!
2. Don't sweat the small stuff. A guy who just spent his entire weekend (uncompensated) nursing a project "go-live" doesn't deserve to be called on the carpet for taking an extra 15 minutes on his lunch break.
3. And above all else, never *ever* hang your people out to dry. You take the heat for them and then deal with them appropriately later, but never make them feel like you are not backing them up 100%.
Treat people as outlined above and they'll be willing to walk through fire for you when the time comes. It's a karma thing.
Why do you think Microsoft has included solitaire with Windows, dating back to the very early releases? It's to give people practice using a mouse.
Let's say you buy a widget that comes with a 1 yr warranty from the manufacturer. The sales rep at BB talks you into a 3 year service plan. BB's service plan doesn't cover the widget while the manufacturer's warranty is in effect. However, the extended plan you bought from BB begins at the date of purchase. This effectively makes your 3 year service plan a 2 year service plan. BB sells these plans knowing that it will cost them ZERO dollars for the first year, and chances are, the product will not fail during the subsequent 2 years. I'd like to see how many sp's they sell compared to how many they actually pay out on. In addition, no service plan covers customer abuse, but I've had salespeople try to sell them that way. I won't buy one. Never have, never will.
My son, a diesel mechanic, recently went to work at a union shop. His first few weeks there, he was trying to bust his a$$ to make a good impression with his new employer. One day, the union shop steward took him aside and told him to 'slow down' because he was making the other, more experienced UNION workers look bad. He was turning out over 50% more work than the UNION guys. A few months after he started, the contract between his employer and the customer whose equipment they maintain was up for bid. There was talk of pay cuts to slash the contract amount to ensure its' renewal. (note: the contract was renewed without the pay cuts)
I guess the customer didn't feel they were getting what they paid for. No wonder, given the attitude of the UNION workers. He's a member of the union now, but doesn't yet (and hopefully never will) buy into to the "entitlement" attitude that seems to infest that shop.
Making people financially responsible for their own rescue costs is just ridiculous. Or are you seriously suggesting that only the people who can or are willing to risk that kind of liability should have access to our Public Parks?
No, what I am saying is that if you are willingly participating in an activity that puts you at risk for getting lost/injured, ie: rock climbing, hiking, backcountry skiing, etc.. You should bear the cost for your rescue, not the taxpayers. I used to live in Utah and there is an abundance of outdoor recreational opportunities within literally minutes of a major metro area. Practically every weekend there would be helicopter rescues of inexperienced, ill-equipped rock climbers, snowmobilers, hunters, and hikers who found themselves in peril due to their own stupidity/lack of preparation. Why should the general public have to foot the bill to pluck some meathead off the top of a mountain peak because he/she didn't foresee cold night temperatures at 10-11,000 feet?
Once word gets out that the trails are "bugged", people will no longer stay on established trails and will try to circumvent the system by creating their own. This will lead to environmental damage, including soil erosion, mudslides, etc.
One way to induce people to use the system would be to hold them financially responsible for the expense of their own rescue.
I could handle all RUSH all the time, but who else is there? Neil Young, Gordon Lightfoot, Anne Murray, Celine Dion? That's probably why most of the Canadian population lives close to the US border - to pick up US radio!
I subscribe to DirecTV, receive over 200 channels, and am sick and tired of nothing (practically) but infomercials from 11:00 or so at night until 5:00-6:00 in the morning. It used to be that infomercials were restricted to the extreme wee hours of the morning, now you can see them any time of day or night. I'm sure these are very profitable for the networks that air them, since it's pure advertising revenue, but enough is enough! Put them on the free airwaves, but if you're paying for television content, cable or dish, you shouldn't have to be subjected to this midless crap. I have never bought anything from an infomercial or shopping network, for that matter. Nor will I ever!
I bought a 2003 Pontiac Grand Am recently, in looking through the owner's manual at the specifications for replacement lamps, I find that the headlamp and driving light replacement bulbs are not listed. Below the little table in the book, it reads "for any bulbs not listed, contact your dealer."
So now, instead of going to Auto Zone to pick up a replacement lamp, I have to go to the dealer and pay probably what will be an inflated price. This is basic maintenance, not some complex procedure. I don't like the idea that if I'm driving across the country and one of my headlamps burns out, I can't go to the local parts shop and get a replacement, so I risk getting a ticket until I can get to a town with 1) a GM dealership and 2) a GM dealership during business hours.
The car manaufacturers should be forced to standardize on a common interface so any PC can connect to the on board computer using a USB or serial connection to read basic system information. Maybe not change critical settings, but a car owner should have reasonable access to information relating to the vehicle. Sort of like printing out a test page on a laser printer, which lists various settings and other useful information.